Miami Hurricanes receiver LaRon Byrd missing from rotation

October 14, 2011|By Shandel Richardson, Sun Sentinel

CORAL GABLES — — LaRon Byrd never expected to be in this situation.

After catching a career-high 41 passes last year, this season was his chance to boost his NFL profile. He would follow the path of former teammate Leonard Hankerson, who used his senior year to raise his draft status.

For Byrd, things haven't gone as planned.

He's fallen out of the rotation, and on pace for the worst season of his once promising career. Byrd, despite the lack of playing time, has remained upbeat.

"It's all about just buying into the coach's system," Byrd said. "I just got to continue to trust the coaches … Everything else will take care of itself."

The 6-foot-4, 220-pound Byrd has caught four passes for 41 yards this season, making just one start. They are unexpected numbers considering the way he began at UM. Byrd was every bit of the player who recruiting analysts called the second-best receiver in Louisiana in the 2008 class.

After catching 50 passes for 630 yards and 13 touchdowns his senior year at Hahnville (La.) High School, he quickly made the transition to the next level. As a freshman at UM, he caught four touchdown passes and always remained in favor of the coaches.

Now, with a new coaching staff, he's on the outside looking in.

Byrd has watched receivers Tommy Streeter, Allen Hurns and even freshman Phillip Dorsett cut into his playing time. Receivers coach George McDonald was unavailable for comment, but coach Al Golden said Byrd has to compete for playing time on a weekly basis just like everyone else.

"I don't think there's any question other guys are stepping up," Golden said. "[Streeter] has stepped up, Allen Hurns has stepped up and are playing well. LaRon has to continue to fight back and compete and his reps will be allocated accordingly. All those guys have to compete and get better every day."

When asked what he needed to improve, Byrd said "everything." One of those areas has been leadership. Despite limited playing time, Byrd has helped with the development of younger players such as Hurns, Dorsett and freshman Rashawn Scott.

Dorsett said Byrd has avoided letting his situation affect the growth of the team.

"He's been helpful," Dorsett said. "He's been basically a mentor to all of us. He's cool with it. He helps us out a lot. He's got an upbeat personality. He doesn't worry about it. He's not one of those selfish guys."

Byrd views his struggles as the coaches challenging him. He referred to the season as still early, saying there are "eight or nine games" left. In reality, Byrd's time is shrinking. The Hurricanes have just seven guaranteed games remaining, with Byrd losing ground each time Hurns makes a diving catch or Streeter scores a touchdown.

"I feel I bought into the system," Byrd said. "When coaches see something in a player that they don't see in themselves, they'll continue to push that player. I take it as a motivating force that they're using toward me just to kick my game up more."